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Biography of John Albert Bentinck (1737-1775; naval captain and M.P.)

John Albert Bentinck was the second son of Count William Bentinck and Countess Charlotte Sophie of Aldenberg, and the grandson of the 1st Earl of Portland. Destined for a naval career, he first went to sea at the age of 14 and by June 1753 had set sail for Newfoundland as the midshipman of the Penzance.

After serving on numerous ships in various locations, in 1759 Bentinck found himself being promoted to the rank of Captain of the Dover, which was on Baltic convoy duty. Again, he moved around from ship to ship, but in 1762 he was superseded in charge of the Niger for ignoring orders. Luckily, his interest and connections meant that this demotion did not cause long-term damage to his career.

Bentinck also pursued a political career. His father had considerable influence with the Duke of Newcastle, and using his connections he was elected as M.P. for Rye in 1761. He played little part in politics, however, speaking only once in the House of Commons - understandably enough in a debate on longitude at sea! His political inactivity led to him losing his seat in 1768.

Bentinck was also well known as an inventor, and as an improver to mechanical devices - especially those used in ships. He gave his name to 'Bentinck shrouds', the 'Bentinck boom' and also to a triangular mainsail which became known as simply 'the Bentinck'. Perhaps his most important innovation, though, was the Coles-Bentinck pump, a much more reliable and efficient version of a standard chain pump, which became standard issue for all ships in the Royal Navy.

Family

In 1763 he married Renira (1744-1792), daughter of John, Baron de Tuyll of Serooskerken and had:

• William (1764-1813), Vice-Admiral in the Royal Navy
• John (1769-1804), a cleric
• Charlotte Frances (d 1850), m Sir Robert Shaw Milnes in 1785
• Henrietta Elizabeth (d 1806), m Admiral Sir George Martin in 1804

Archive Collections

• The Portland (Welbeck) Collection held in Manuscripts and Special Collections at The University of Nottingham contains letters of John Albert Bentinck
• Details of collections held elsewhere are available through the National Register of Archives.

Published Sources

• There are apparently no publications exclusively dedicated to John Albert Bentinck.